Felix Auger-Aliassime had to be at his best to beat Marin Cilic at the 2025 Dubai Championships, but the Canadian player was able to handle the challenge.
Auger-Aliassime proved multiple times that he’s one of the best players on the ATP Tour, but the Canadian has struggled in recent years. He finally found his best level in 2025 again, and it shows in his results.
He has already won two titles this year. First, the 24-year-old triumphed in Adelaide, and then, he was able to win in Montpellier as well. The Canadian player also reached the Qatar Open semi-finals, and he’s on another great run at the ATP 500 event in Dubai.
His quarter-final opponent was Marin Cilic, who is still searching for his best level, but he was able to record back-to-back wins in Dubai. It was the first time he won consecutive matches since September last year.
Although it was a quarter-final meeting of two good servers in Dubai, there were still plenty of break point chances for both.
Cilic certainly felt like the opening set was stolen from him. He had four break points, and after failing to use his fourth chance, his opponent went on a streak, winning 12 out of 14 rallies.
Thanks to that run, Auger-Aliassime broke the Croatian’s serve and led 5-3. He then easily served out the first set of this match, winning it 6-4.
But Cilic is a Grand Slam champion for a reason. He got revenge in the second set by saving two of his opponent’s break points and using one of his own. At one point, the 2014 US Open champion won 12 points in a row.
Thanks to serving really well and winning 77% of rallies after his first serve, Cilic was able to win the second set 6-3, forcing a decider.
But the 36-year-old player didn’t have much left in the tank. He played three-set matches against Alex de Minaur and Alexei Popyrin, and it was his third three-setter in three days.
Auger-Aliassime used that to his advantage and dominated the third set. Despite facing two break points, the Canadian player was never broken, and he also used two of his seven chances to break to establish a big lead.
He never lost that and won the match 6-4, 3-6, 6-2, to reach yet another ATP 500 semi-final. His next opponent will be the winner of the match between Luca Nardi and Quentin Halys, which will mean another great chance for him to reach the final.
